Nugomi

The dance I

The shaking won't stop. The incessant dance of limbs and innards quiver to the arrhythmic tune of a caged player keeping a poor little trembling newborn in the corner of a room. I hate to admit it, but that's the way that I feel. It's been three days since I've set foot outside my little concrete house. The voice of the man-monster—constantly echoes and reverberates against the walls of the house; taunting me; belittling me. Never in my life have I ever felt such fear grip my entire body so fiercely, so debilitating. I try to take a deep breath under chattering teeth, trying to think through what had happened.

Is that a nûgomi? I'll be honest, I always thought it was a bunch of fairy tales. A means to explain the mysterious death that had been plaguing our little island for as long as I can remember. Should those monsters even be allowed to live? What if they get tired of their little snack and decide to attack the whole country!? No matter how you slice it, it's really bad news. The shaking intensifies as the caged conductor increases his tempo, my teeth grinding against each other. But why did that man, Mr. World, not kill me. Was I just lucky?

I wobble myself up the corner using the adjacent walls as support. I slowly tremble my way across the room. Fortunately enough, the room is small enough to require a few steps to get to the sink. I turned the faucet. A fart of air is expelled from the rusty pipe, alluding to the fact that this well Is all dried up. A coarse strip of flesh licks my lips as I close the faucet back again. I can't stay like this, I'll wither in a couple of more days. I drag my feet towards a piece of fabric with a zipper in the middle. I unzip it, letting the sunlight invade my little triangular home. Grudgingly, my feet meet with sand as I step outside.

If you had a telescope from a distance, you could almost be fooled into thinking that a bright blue ocean existed in the middle of a desert where tiny little vertical fishes freely swam across the underground. However, the town of Mogliu does not have a river and much less an ocean. Each resident, If you can call them that, simply wandered around the area until finally settling down in whatever little patch of sand they found most attractive. They later erect what some people may describe as a house, crudely made out of stone and wood imported from other towns, perfectly stable prism. Nobody knows why we paint the top blue, but In my opinion, it makes the cold stone look more lively.

As I traveled between the disproportionately distributed sea, while morally acquiring some food and water along the way, I came across interesting information. Big Mac had heard rumors about a band of "white men" settling down in the northern part of the Duermos. Most of North Duermos is inhabited, mostly due to the steep mountains that rise as high as clouds and the dense forests that seem to repel any kind lightly. Most people that try entering never seem to come back.

"I say, that lot is lookin' right suspicious," said the one-eyed hunk of metal. "I hear that them fellows are mounting up a party. A real classy one." Clunk! goes the knife as it decapitates a wide-eyed fish. You wouldn't expect such a brutish-looking guy could have such finesse with his fingers as he gracefully slices the fish in equal portions and removes the scales. "Maybe's time for uncle Jones to pay a visit to this little gathering " I jokingly said. Though it wouldn't be a bad idea, such a big party must come with really fat cats. "Forget it, from what my little fishy tells, this party's friends only," He said as the decapitated fish mimics his words. "Said you need a special paper " Big Mac finally removes the fish from his hand and tosses it to the side. This could be a good opportunity, maybe I could find out more about this Mr. World guy and his intentions here. I can't say I'm the most moral guy around or even the most loyal, but this place is the only thing I got to a family. Yes, a bit dysfunctional. Yes, you have to watch your back, but... without this, what am I? If the whole island got conquered by some disfigured monsters, where do I stand? Could somebody say Marcus Jones existed? "Ey' man if ya ain't buying, get walking. You're stinking up the place with that sour face of yours"

I leave Big Mac behind, not before I got a handful of fish in my pockets, serve him right for kicking me out.

Before I knew it, I had walked straight into the town of Despaira. Maybe my subconscious wanted to meet that man again. I wonder why? Those red-green almost felt like they were pulling me in, undressing my very being. Why is it that my fear and hatred dissipate when I think about that blinding light that stood in front of me? The grotesque scenery that once strangled my heart began to feel slightly nostalgic. As if I had met the man before in a lifetime.

While thinking about nonsense and word vomit, I was Skipping around broken-down homes in Despairia, whose purpose is as long forgotten as our history. These buildings share a stark contrast to what most of the other towns look like. These buildings differ from ours in many aspects. For starters, our little blue cones have no discernable pattern in where they are placed. The settlers just plot down their little household where ever they feel like, giving it a sort of chaotic feel. While this one shares a common method in placement and shape. Square on all sides, or at least I guess because most of them are so run-down that only their foundation is left. The houses follow a strict pattern of straight lines and right angles as if their position held some significant importance. Wondering through the ancient city, and imagining the sort of people or creatures that used to live, the same blinding light of white hit my eyes. There, in front of a broken building stood a white-clothed youth. I would say 16 at best, but if he—it is also a nûgomi, this could be a disguise. So I tread carefully, closing in on the figure trying to not be noticed. The figure had a mop of hair whose color seemed to harmonize with the sun, a bright yellow hue with hints of red on the edges of his bangs. Just like the man from before, his face seemed to be sculpture by sculpture but instead, he tried a new technique, where the sharp edges of the man were prominent, he was rounded and soft. His skin was pale white as if he hadn't known the sun until this very day. As I slowly approach the figure, he was alerted to my presence.

"Who goes there? Show yourself!" The youth exclaimed with a shaking voice. Stopping in my tracks and raised my hands in a sign of peace. Seems that the gesture calmed the boy down a little because his tense shoulder was slightly lower. "Who are you? What are you doing in this area? I thought this area was supposed to be abandoned..." He muttered the last sentence. "Abandoned? But I live just around the corner, I should be asking who you are " I lied

"OH! Is that so I apologize for my rudeness, my name is Alexandre Krunishna I was just... Wait a minute you're not lying to me are you."

This kid's an i***t.

"What would I gain from lying to, Alexandre. I live just by that house" I point to the most decent-looking structure in the distance. The kid looks back at the building and stares at it for a moment"If that's so... where were you when the infected attacked?" Infected. There's that word again. First from Mr. World, now with this kid. If I play my cards right, I can probably get more information. "Infected? Never seen them before. But perhaps...." I trail off the question. The kid excited slowly inches forward in anticipation. "I did see a strange shape in the dark, moving suspiciously around these parts recently, but can't remember too well, it was pretty dark," I said " strange shape... maybe an early stage of disease " disease? Is some type of contagious disease. "From what can you remember, did it have red eye or some other color?" The kid asks

Isn't he describing the same grotesque shape that Mr. World transformed into? what's the relation.? "Can't remember, it was pretty dark. Say is this some contagious diseases are we trouble or something?" I question the youth. "H-uh!!, disease w-what are y-you taking about. Uuh.. hey it was probably one of those nûgomi things you people keep talking about...haha" nûgomi thing? Do they consider themselves something different from the Nûgomi then what are they. Unfortunately, it seems that he won't speak any further about the subject so I'll let it there "Oh yeah, rumors has it you folks are having some grand party or something. Inviting the whole island?" I give an inquiring look to the youth. "Uuh. I apologize sir, but this is an extremely important reunion of all the haruzhami family. So you can only enter if you are part of the family or have a special invite like this one" The boy produces a golden card from the breast pocket of his jacket and flourishes it proudly "You see, only family members or associates can receive this card "

Prize insight.

"Interesting, you must be proud to receive such an invitation" I implore the boy."Oh man, I have been waiting for this since I was a child. Only people older than 16 can attend and my birthday was last month " the boy puffs his chest in self-admiration, his golden-red locks streaming on the side of his face." Kinda cutting it close there, didn't you? Say, can I see that card for a second?" For a moment the boy's cheerful expression changed to a completely different look? Too serious; like the cheerful boy I was talking to was only a facade. "Why?" That simple word resonated throughout the whole town. The empty house amplifies the rumbling sound that slightly growled in the boy. "Woah there partner, no need to get so serious, I just wanted to take a look. It's not like can use it or anything. I'm not a family member or whatever. So you can relax." The boy's eyes whose colors seem similar to Mr. World except that they are less cohesive and more segregated to different parts of his eyes. Those same eyes were piercing through my skull, but after a while, he relaxed and his expression softened. "I guess you're right. Sorry for my rude behavior " the boy bows down in repentance. He got closer to me handed over the card. As if was being pulled a prank by some mischievous God, the card that was handed to me was a spitting image of the card the old lady had in her purse. The main difference was the text which read" Alexandre Krunishna, son of the house of the seven stars to have formally being summoned to the annual gathering ". At the bottom of the card, a silhouette of a dog was Imprinted on the bottom of the card. "House of the seven stars, huh? Sounds like a pretty well-established house " As if the sun had donated all of its shine to the boy's face and all the color of the brightest rose, the boy jumped and dance." Right! Right! The house of the seven stars is an honorable house which boasts a recorded history of 1,000 years! We also have associates all over the world from Mestia to Vagonda! And we pride ourselves in our fairness and...and" The ramble on about nonsense, I began to quickly note down all the details of the note. Front to back, designs lettering and wording, as the kid tired himself explaining the wonders of his house, I had finished drawing a perfect outline of the note." Yup, it sure is impressive. Here's the card back" Alexandre received the card painting and Red flushed, clearly exhausted from his little display." Well, Mr. Alexandre Krunishna, it was an honor and pleasure to meet and I give my blessing for a wonderful afternoon" I said as I began to turn away from the kid. "Wait! I never got your name"

"You can call me Marcus Jones"